Unruly children can make life difficult for the parents and other’s subjected to their poor behavior. It begs the question ‘Who is at fault’. Is it the child’s fault, or is this a result of poor parenting? Unless the child is handicapped, suffering from a mental illness or dealing with a traumatic event, it’s a direct result of poor parenting.
Parents need to realize that teaching their children how to behave and be respectful begins when the child is a toddler. If the parent doesn’t instill behavioral expectations when their children are young it will be one big battle when the child reaches teenage years.
It is a parent’s job to educate children how to act accordingly as a toddler. A parent needs to be able to do what is best for their child even if it will upset them. Parents cannot be an effective parent and their child’s friend too.
Positive encouragement for good behavior needs to be utilized in addition to discipline for bad behavior. If a child gets mad at their parent, says the hurtful words ‘I hate you’ or stomps around the home when they don’t get their way, then the parent is doing what they need to do.
The parents who are not being an effective parent always have an excuse as to why. Here are some of the most often used excuses and explanations.
- They just won’t listen.
- I feel bad because his/her mom/dad isn’t in their life.
- I don’t want to deal with their bad mood.
- I don’t want to deal with the argument that will happen if I don’t (insert child’s demand here)
- It’s easier to just let him/her do what they want.
- It’s easier to just do it myself.
Parenting is a difficult task. A great parent recognizes the fact that their job is to have child who grows up into a mature responsible adult. Ignoring bad behavior, being unwilling to discipline their child, and striving to always make their child happy regardless of their behavior isn’t the way to reach that goal.
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